VICTORY UPDATE: On 6/28/24, U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen ruled largely in our favor, ruling Fish and Wildlife Service's revised Biological Opinion and the Forest Service's reliance upon it both unlawful! His ruling confirms that research still supports the full reclamation of logging roads, including the removal of their culverts, in order to protect threatened grizzly bears and bull trout. Read more about this important decision in our Summer 2024 newsletter!
Swan View Coalition and Friends of the Wild Swan are in the process of filing new lawsuits against the revised Flathead Forest Plan's building of logging roads in threatened grizzly bear and bull trout habitat!
In response to our initial 2019 lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy on 6/24/21 ordered FWS to redo its 2017 Biological Opinion approving the revised Forest Plan because it had abandoned key requirements of the prior Forest Plan's Amendment 19. He did not, however, order the Forest Service to rewrite similarly flawed portions of its Forest Plan.
FWS issued its revised Biological Opinion on 2/16/22, which failed to require the protections afforded grizzly bear and bull trout under the prior Forest Plan Amendment 19.
Earthjustice on 5/31/22 filed a new lawsuit on our behalf against FWS and its revised Biological Opinion. Here is the news coverage in the Flathead Beacon, Missoula Current and Hungry Horse News.
Earthjustice on 7/19/22 filed on our behalf the required 60-day notice that we intend to sue the Forest Service for once again relying on FWS's flawed Biological Opinion to abandon the Amendment 19 road management program in its revised Forest Plan. We will file the actual lawsuit after the 60 days advance notice expires.
We are more than grateful for Earthjustice and its continued excellent representation of us, the bears and the trout in these lawsuits.
Click here for more information about our initial 2019 lawsuit against the revised Flathead Forest Plan and click here for more information about Judge Molloy's initial ruling.
And please DONATE NOW to support our work and the continuation of these important lawsuits. Act quickly and Cinnabar Foundation will match the first $4,000 in donations that we receive, doubling your impact!
